This invention relates to a method of arranging a prepress workflow, and more particularly, this invention relates to a method of arranging a prepress workflow in a workflow having a distributed object scan module.
The prepress industry typically uses a number of different stand alone servers, such as a raster image processor, an OPI server having high and low resolution data, a scanning software module and other hardware and software components. These components typically are included on different software packages and must be set up with involved preparation, often on different computer systems. Typically each software program must be individually programmed, such as by bringing up the server based program and programming each of the different programs. This is inefficient and not desirable.
In a prepress workflow, not only is it difficult to configure many different modules because there is no adequate graphical user interface, but also there is no adequate and ready method or system for arranging a prepress workflow from the initial input of data to a terminal device.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a prepress workflow that includes a graphical user interface and initial scan module that can direct workflow.
The method of the present invention is advantageous because it now arranges a prepress workflow and directs a desired prepress workflow among prepress hardware and/or software distributed object modules based on the type of data entering the distributed object scan module. A prepress memory manager is loaded on a local computer as a result of user input such that a graphical user interface is displayed. A prepress system design palette is loaded and has a plurality of interlinked module icons, each representative of the different prepress hardware and/or software distributed object modules. A scan module icon is a first module icon among the interlinked module icons representative of a distributed object scan module that initially receives data for the prepress workflow.
The distributed object scan module can establish a desired prepress workflow among the prepress hardware and/or software distributed object modules and into a desired terminal device. This distributed object scan module also can convert data into a format that can be used by subsequent distributed object modules within the workflow. Available memory can be determined within the local computer from the distributed object scan module to allow subsequent processing of data within the workflow from the distributed object scan module only if sufficient memory is available. The scan module icon can be dragged from a modules toolbar into the system design palette. The distributed object scan module can also be configured by opening a scan module setup window such as by clicking a mouse button when a pointer is entered on the scan module icon.